Chapter 11

Summary

• The narrator's timer beeps, notifying two hours have passed, and they wake up floating in the control room, not fully rested.
• They decide to return to Rocky despite needing more rest, to maintain trust.
• In the tunnel, they find that Rocky has been productive, noticing a new airlock system that can facilitate the exchange of items.
• The narrator introduces a unit of length to Rocky by using a tape measure, hoping the Eridians understand metric measurements.
• Upon using the new "squarelock," the narrator realizes the Eridian atmosphere is hotter than anticipated, melting rubber parts of the tape measure.
• Rocky investigates the tape measure, seemingly unfazed by the temperature, while the narrator suspects that Rocky might not see the same way humans do.
• The narrator explores the possibility that Rocky perceives his environment through sound rather than sight, given the Eridian reaction to physical items.
• Rocky seems captivated by the retracting mechanism of the tape measure and is not immediately interested in the numeration on the tape.
• As Rocky is momentarily obsessed with the tape measure, the narrator attempts to figure out his method for sensing the environment.
• After confirming Rocky uses sound to perceive his surroundings, the narrator mulls over the Eridian's potential knowledge of technology and space travel without visual sight.
• The chapter switches to a courtroom scene, where Stratt, representing Project Hail Mary, dismisses a lawsuit using exceptional legal protections due to the project's urgent nature.
• Back in the spaceship, the narrator browses software, looking for a waveform analyzer to analyze sound and communicate with Rocky, calling it learning "Eridianese."
• When Rocky isn't present in the tunnel, the narrator deliberates on the presence and roles of other Eridians on the ship and sets up a return time using symbols made from Popsicle sticks.
• The narrator decides to sleep, setting up a makeshift baby monitor in the tunnel to keep an eye on the divider wall, and then falls asleep tightly wedged into the bed to avoid floating.